How 2001 downturn will impact regions, chip segmentsNews & Analysis 5/29/2001 Post a commentTAIPEI, Taiwan -- The big losers in chip revenues this year will be the Americas and Asia Pacific markets as well as memories, bipolar digital ICs, and "micro" product segments, according to the new World Semiconductor Trade Statistics (WSTS) forecast issued this week.

Acer Labs, Trident to co-develop chip set for Intel's Tualatin processor lineNews & Analysis 5/29/2001 Post a commentSANTA CLARA, Calif. -- Trident Microsystems Inc. and Acer Laboratories Inc. (ALi) today announced plans to co-develop an integrated chip set that supports Intel Corp.'s future Pentium III processors based on a 0.13-micron process technology.
ALi and Trident announced that they will co-develop the so-called CyberAladdinT, an integrated 3D graphics chip set for use in notebook PCs. Supporting both SDRAM and double-data-rate (DDR) SDRAM, the chip set is optimized for Intel's code-named Tualatin pr

Sony to put TV on mobilesNews & Analysis 5/29/2001 Post a commentSony Semiconductor is developing silicon that will allow users of next-generation smartphones and personal digital assistants to watch TV on their devices.

Broadband Wireless AccessDesign How-To 5/29/2001 Post a commentBenny Bing discusses the design and development of broadband wireless access systems with emphasis on how such systems can efficiently support disparate classes of multimedia traffic.

Motorola puts its chips on communicationsNews & Analysis 5/28/2001 Post a commentMotorola Inc. is counting on its latest reorganization and merchant market focus to enable its Semiconductor Products Sector (SPS) to strengthen its position in communication ICs. SPS, based in Phoenix, is planning two major initiatives: entry into merchant handset chips and expansion into support ICs for the networking infrastructure.

Media processing for the all digital homeNews & Analysis 5/25/2001 Post a commentToday's goal for designers of consumer appliances is an all-digital, broadband, home network. Future appliances will be connected to each other and the Internet through a media server. Set-top boxes will allow consumers to download media on-demand. This audio and video media will come, as pay per view, in a variety of formats, such as MPEG-4 for video and MP3 for audio.

Q1 fab utilization falls near low point of last recessionNews & Analysis 5/25/2001 Post a commentSAN JOSE -- Worldwide wafer fab utilization rates plunged to their lowest levels in two years during the first quarter of 2001, according to new industry statistics. IC wafer fabrication plants were operating at 83.7% of their installed capacity in Q1 compared to 92.8% in Q4 of 2000, said a report released by the Semiconductor Industry Association here this week.

Via rolls out processor line with small, low-cost EBGA packageNews & Analysis 5/25/2001 Post a commentTAIPEI, Taiwan -- Taiwan's Via Technologies Inc. here today announced an x86-based microprocessor line that features a new, low-cost package.
Available at speed grades up to 733-MHz, the new VIA C3 E-Series microprocessor line from Via comes in an small EBGA package. Applications for the chip include low-cost PCs, digital set-top boxes, embedded systems, and other products.

Spin-on low-k may gain advantage with porous-film requirement, says studyNews & Analysis 5/24/2001 Post a commentLITTLE FALLS, N.J. -- The next major round of competition in low-k dielectrics for IC interconnects is about to heat up, and it looks like spin-on technology could gain an advantage over chemical vapor deposition (CVD) because of its ability to layer porous films with low-k values of nearly 2.0, according to a new study.

Mentor Graphics Tops European EDA ChartsSurvey 5/24/2001 Post a commentTwenty years after it was founded Mentor Graphics has topped the charts of electronic design automation (EDA) companies according to a survey conducted among electronics companies across Europe by Enterprise Planning & Research Ltd